Web notes from Benjamin Whitmer

Anti-whaling movement bigotry

I caught a show called Whale Wars the other night, headed up by anti-whaling superstar Paul Watson. I was kinda interested, given that Paul Watson has another side: he’s known throughout Indian Country as an inveterate racist. See, the Makah, a Washington State area Indian people who have been whaling for millennia, have retained the right to harvest a certain amount of whales, and in their infinite wisdom, the Sea Shepherd clones have taken aim at them with a zeal which would have done John Chivington proud.

You can find great coverage of racism within the anti-whaling movement here. None of it is new. From what I’ve been able to discern, the anti-whaling movement as a whole has based itself on the most virulently racist ideology you’re likely to find this side of a Klan meeting.

Moreover, Paul Watson has a few other problems, as related by Eugene Johnson.

Paul likes to legitimize his racism by saying he was at the Wounded Knee siege in ’73 as a medic. However, no one remembers him. His story of having a vision where he was visited by a buffalo and interpreted by Wallace Black Elk is unsubstantiated. Not only do none of the Wounded Knee Vets remember Paul Watson, but Wallace stated he never interpreted such a vision. Paul also claims to have been given the name “Gray Wolf Clearwater” by Wallace. Wallace stated he not only did not remember giving such a name to anyone, let alone during the siege, but he would never give two names to the same person. Paul Watson is lying because it serves his racist ideals.

Anyway, I only made it about ten minutes into the show. I had a new James Crumley novel on my bed table, and spending an evening watching bigots preen was just a little more than I could take.